Strength, Bravery, Courage
by Twilight Joltik
Summary: I did not hesitate. Not even for a moment. Should that frighten me? I think not. Reason had no place in a situation like this, nor did self-preservation or second-guessing. In a second, I found myself sprinting towards the fight to stop the attack. Character study of Kurt during Bash.


**_AN- Hey look, a Glee thing. I don't own Glee, just my ideas. _**

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Strength, Bravery, Courage- A Character Study by Twilight Joltik

Rachel was upset with me. That was nothing new. I attempt to help her, she acts as if I am attempting to murder her. But the real clincher was the fact she said I took no risks. Those words were the ones echoing through my head as I walked home. Was she correct? I did not think so. I could not immediately think of any, but perhaps my "risks" were ones I did not think of as such. Perhaps I took my tongue piercing out less than a day after receiving it, but I made absolutely no attempts to hide my love for Blaine in public. I couldn't decide if that counted as a risk or not.

All of Rachel's words melted away as I glanced into a dark alley after hearing a noise suspiciously similar to cries for help. A man, cornered by two others, was getting attacked rather viciously.

I did not hesitate. Not even for a moment. Should that frighten me? I think not. Reason had no place in a situation like this, nor did self-preservation or second-guessing. In a second, I found myself sprinting towards the fight to stop the attack.

I ran towards one of the assailants, who had pinned the man to the ground and told him to leave the man alone. To be entirely honest, I was not aware of what I or the others were saying. My mind was not present, only rage and drive. The only thought that I could hold onto was the fact that something very bad was happening and I needed to stop it. No thoughts of consequence or reason, only a vague knowledge of what needed to be done.

But even that was knocked away from me as I was knocked to the ground. I was vaguely aware of something hitting me and a slicing pain in my head. Darkness rose up around me, and through it nothing shined. I thought I may have heard a voice, a screech, or a vague siren, but nothing else touched the inky darkness that had been forced upon me.

I could not tell what was happening. However, I could certainly tell something had happened. The burning pain enveloping my head reminded me of that. I could not tell whether the knives slicing into me were letting up or getting more furious. It seemed to change on a whim every few seconds. The darkness had taken a hold of me, and I couldn't keep a hold on a thought for long enough to care or stop it.

The dark seemed to go on for all of eternity, or perhaps a few seconds. Time does not flow as it should in nightmares. I could never know what was happening. I was not 'awake', I couldn't think. I don't believe I could have remembered my own name, or what a 'name' was supposed to be if I tried. Thoughts also do not flow as they should in nightmares.

After a time, I was certain the pain was lessening. I did not know why. Was I just getting used to it? No, a few noises started to pierce the black. A steady beep, a voice? No, a lullaby. The dark was singing me to its endless sleep, was it? No, that couldn't be it. The song carried traces of pain and something else. I could not place the emotion. I could not think any farther than that.

The song barely faultered, though countless moments passed. It started to stir something in me. Words came back to me in their loosest sense. 'Lyrics' 'melody'; were they what were giving my heart a voice once more? Perhaps, but I knew the 'voice' was what affected me, somehow. I couldn't pull up any 'names' in my dark stupor, no 'faces' or 'memories' came either, but I somehow knew now this lullaby was benign. The dark did not wish to harm me, only dull the pain and keep me safe until I was strong enough to break through it.

In time, my head began to clear and I could think freely. I was somewhat awake, but barely in the sense one would typically use the term. The lullaby had not stopped, only changed. I was now aware of someone holding my hand and sitting next to me. I could place the voice now with ease. Who else would it have been. I knew Blaine must have been worried sick about me, but I still couldn't quite find the energy to truly 'awake' and tell him not to worry.

Finally, the dark let me go and I opened my eyes. I was somewhere I did not recognize, most likely a hospital. The beeping grew steadier, and now I could see it was my own pulse giving Blaine's songs a vague tempo. However, he had fallen asleep, still kneeled next to me, hand in mine. I gave his a squeeze, and he raised his head. Smiling, he expressed joy at my awakening. I could barely find my voice, I barely kept a hold on consciousness, but I tried. He did not deserve to hear only silence, so I somehow told him I was alright. He asked me if I wanted to see anyone else, as they had all come at once when receiving the call. I had no clue how they would have known to call them, but I couldn't worry about such trivial matters. I didn't really care to see anyone, but I knew they would be worried, so I agreed.

Blaine left, likely to alert the others I was awake. It took a moment, making me fight even harder to stay awake. I concłuded I must have been knocked unconscious, but after that medicine forced me to stay asleep. I had no idea how long it had been; the room was bright but lacked windows. Deciding to ask my friends when they came in, I bit the inside of my cheek to fight off weariness and attempted to sit up to greet them.

I couldn't quite make it that far, but I managed to stay awake until the door cracked open. However, when the door opened, it was not Rachel, Mercedes, Sam, and Artie that rushed to my side, but my father. My breath caught in surprise before I reminded myself that there wasn't any way he would have not come. Not after all I had been through and... Finn. I was not sure whether to feel ashamed I had worried him, or proud of how I had fought. His words echoed through my head; no one pushes us around- and that's when I met his slightly red eyes with a smirk. I knew what he would say, how he would express indignation at my carelessness, but I knew I was proud of my strength, of my bravery...

Of my _courage_.

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**_AN- Sigh. This certainly relieves a bit of the PTSD I have after my previous Glee fanfics. Er, don't worry about that; they're deleted now, for the most part._**

**_On a happier note, Kurt's characterization in Bash really impressed me. I had lost most faith in him as a character, but that episode really showed me how he's evolved and gotten stronger over the seasons. Also, Blaine's song was really sweet. *squee*_**

**_Thanks for reading!- Twilight Joltik_**


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